2C — January 31 - February 13, 2020 — 2020 Forecast — M id A tlantic Real Estate Journal
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C ommercial R eal E state L aw By Neil Andrew Stein, Esquire, Kaplin | Stewart Moral dilemmas for local government in 2020
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evelopers are often cast in the villain role when they appear in
life impacts upon existing property owners. The torrent of new multi-family housing, without addressing gentrifi- cation and the absence of af- fordable housing, brings this dilemma into sharp focus. Whereas local politics has traditionally been somewhat boring fare, those seeking local office are now focused on the side effects of new de- velopment. Balancing these competing interests is possible, but it takes a high degree of coop- eration between developers
and communities. For ex- ample, the housing boom in Newark, New Jersey, has bal- anced the needs of vulnerable communities while keeping the welcome mat out for new development. Unfortunately, striking a balance requires elected officials to engage in proactive planning rather than reactionary policy. Mu- nicipal land use planning can prove difficult for many reasons. For example: • the picayune nature of modern zoning codes can lead to undesirable outcomes.
First, bureaucrats often make up their own rules or apply confusing rules inconsistently. This is the very definition of arbitrary regulations. This of- ten leads to a clash of experts. • municipal leaders may think they can micromanage land uses and control their economy. In doing so, they zone and rezone and overlay, meaning that people cannot rely on their being able to continue their previously legal activities. It diminishes secu- rity and means that long-term plans and investments may
come to naught. • because everything is forbidden, but you can get exceptions, you wind up with government for the favored and powerful. This under- mines the idea of rule of law. Residents often believe that unless one has “connections,” elected officials will not listen to legitimate neighborhood concerns. • many municipalities now take the position that, when it comes to the use of land, everything is forbidden ex- cept that which is expressly allowed in the zoning code. This has obvious limiting ef- fects on new businesses and models. • The Pennsylvania Com- monwealth Court recently held that municipalities lack the authority to regulate in the areas of environmental protection reserved to the De- partment of Environmental Protection. Zoning and land use regula- tions can be used to promote sprawl or discourage it or to exploit scarce resources or conserve them. Zoning and land use regulations have been used to discriminate against people of color and low-income people. The func- tional adaptability of zoning and land use regulations offers tremendous opportuni- ties for improving land use regulation. Developers will need to shift gears by packing new devel- opment in the form of socially responsible development. Whether that means working with community members in Opportunity Zones to figure out adaptive reuse projects to benefit whole neighborhoods or finding a path to bring workforce housing into afflu- ent areas, savvy investors at any level should realize that a community can’t thrive sus- tainably unless its workforce has adequate shelter within their means. So, my prediction is that we’ll see many more bitter fights between “NIMBY” fac- tions and their own elected representatives -- as well as justified outrage in gentrify- ing areas from low-income community members who are being displaced. Neil Andrew Stein is a principal of Kaplin | Stew- art and a member of the Land Use, Zoning & De- velopment Department.
a neighbor- h o o d w i t h plans to de- velop or re- develop land for more in- tensive com- mer c i a l or residential uses. Local
Neil Stein
government often must bal- ance the tax windfall that new development may gen- erate against the quality of
Kaplin Stewart At t o rney s a t Law Business and Corporate Law - To the point! Experience Counts. Count On Us.
Contact: NEIL A. STEIN • nstein@kaplaw.com • www.kaplaw.com 910 Harvest Drive, Blue Bell, PA 19422 • 610-941-2469 Other Offices: • Cherry Hill, NJ 856-675-1550 • Philadelphia, PA 215-567-3120
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